On such monitoring visits, the HMI does not give an overall grade for the school but has to judge whether or not the school is taking effective action to address issues identified in previous inspections or visits. As we hoped and expected, Mr Hughes recognised that we are tackling all areas requiring improvement effectively. Unusually for such visits, he gave us no new actions for improvement, further confirmation that our approach to school improvement is comprehensive.

The full letter is a longer document but some key messages from it are:

“Behaviour has improved steadily”

“The conduct of the vast majority of pupils in lessons is good”

“Governors have provided good support for the improvements you are making”

“The work done to improve teaching is an increasingly strong feature of the academy’s work”

“Teachers use a variety of techniques and methods effectively”

Mr Hughes also noted that our “focused work has resulted in an academy that is rapidly improving”

We have all been doing our very best to make Hamilton Academy an even better school and as a staff were pleased that Mr Hughes agreed with our evaluation of the school’s improving situation.

Please do read the full report – any feedback will be greatly appreciated.